The present invention relates to a hand-held device for applying a film of material carried on a backing tape onto a substrate.
A hand-held device of this type is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,759, corresponding to European Publication EP 0 507 818 B1. This previously known hand-held device comprises an application member projecting from the housing. The application member is pivotably connected to an application base at the housing of the hand-held device by a ball joint. The application member edge at its bottom side facing the substrate in the position of use two lateral support legs spaced apart from the application, which abut on the substrate like the application edge and thereby are supposed to define a certain position of the wedge-shaped application member with respect to the substrate during the mode of operation. The joint is at the rear end of the support legs. In order to ensure a stable position of the application member during the mode of operation, it is obviously necessary to use the hand-held device in a position in which the application member abuts on a stop of the base, as is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3 of this printed publication. This makes it more difficult to handle the hand-held device.
Publication DE 196 05 811 C1 describes a hand-held device for transferring an adhesive film from a backing tape onto a substrate, in which the film can be applied continuously or intermittently, as illustrated in FIG. 4 of said publication. In the described hand-held device, the application member is constituted by an application shaft around which the backing tape is wound and which can be selectively blocked against rotation or released for rotation by means of a setting mechanism. In the disclosed hand-held device, the shaft is an additional component, extending between lateral joint sides of an application base associated with the housing and is located at each end between fork-like side portions forming a locating means in an appertaining locating recess. This known embodiment is complex and affords high expenditure in manufacture and assembly. Moreover, stability is impaired by the fork-like division of the joint sides.
It is an object of the invention to improve the bearing properties of the application member in a hand-held device. It is to be ensured that the application edge remains at the substrate during the mode of operation.
In the hand-held device of the present invention, a joint is provided in the projection onto the plane of abutment between the support legs and the application edge. Thereby, the application member is held on the substrate in a stable manner during operation. In the mode of operation, the application edge is permanently pressed against the substrate due to a torque which is automatically in operation permanently due to a distance directed towards the application edge, which distance is the distance of the joint axle from the support legs.
The present invention provides a hand-held device in the form of a simple and stable construction. In one embodiment of the hand-held device of the present invention, a rigid joint axle is provided which is formed at the joint sides and thus associated therewith and manufactured in one part. Thereby, a simple and inexpensive embodiment is created, which results in substantial simplifications also in view of assembly and disassembly. Furthermore, the embodiment results in a sturdy construction because the joint sides are stabilised by the joint axles integrally associated therewith. What is to be taken into consideration is that, during operation, substantial pressure is exerted on the application member and thus also on the appertaining joint, which the embodiment according to the invention can safely absorb also in case of a small construction.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the locating device is mounted between the joint sides. Thereby, the joint sides are free from locating, so that they can be designed in a more stable and simple fashion. The locating device can make favorable use of the space available between the joint sides, without impairing or increasing the construction, so that a small construction is achieved, too. Moreover, the configuration according to the invention is suitable also when it comes to simple assembly or disassembly or to the accessibility for assembly and disassembly.
Further features of the invention lead to large bearing surfaces of the joint and enable small surface pressing, improve the support of the application member relative to the base also in a lateral direction, and result in more favorable shapes as far as spatial requirements are concerned.
A further advantage of the configuration according to the invention consists in that in the event of several application members of different shapes being associated with the hand-held device, the application members can selectively be mounted to the hand-held device easily and rapidly and the hand-held device thus can be adapted to different requirements as to application.
In the following, preferred configurations of several exemplary embodiments shall be explained in more detail with the aid of drawings.